Architect of Style : David Monn

David Monn is responsible for designing some of the city’s most elaborate and elite soirées, but don’t be fooled: He is so much more than just an event planner.

By Nicole Kotovos | Photography by Brian Dorsey

[highlight_text] He is known for his meticulous attention to detail, a trait he admits might be a fault at times. [/highlight_text]

For David Monn, it all began in a small town in Pennsylvania in his childhood home’s backyard, where he spent countless hours imagining majestic fantasies as a mechanism to escape a destitute life. Monn soon realized that the ability to visualize such vivid dreamscapes represented a talent: “I bring or take the things that I fantasize about and turn them into reality, and then people get to experience them. It is a real gift.” This gift of fantasizing grandiose and magical scenarios represents the blueprints for his events, which are masterpieces that have taken New York’s elite inner social circles by storm.

Monn is renowned as the “architect of style”. He is the president of David E. Monn, LLC, an event architecture firm that caters to worldwide clients such as LVMH, Guggenheim Museum, and the New York Public Library, to name just a few. If you have been lucky enough to grace the guest list at A-list parties and major social events like the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s annual Costume Institute Gala or the Opening Night of the Metropolitan Opera, then you have experienced his magic.

Monn took the time from his busy schedule to speak with us about what all goes into creating his lavish events. First and foremost, Monn demands total control. “Primarily, the only way I think it can be done is that we do every single aspect of the party… I want full control. This is not an ego thing. The best analogy that I can give is that when a rough diamond is cut, every single facet is put together with the eye of the cutter… no diamond is cut by two people.”

This is the ideal way to describe events done by Monn, virtual masterpieces sculpted out of the rough. Monn and his team have the amazing abilities to transform mundane and familiar venues into magical wonderlands sculpted to convey the host’s vision. He states his favorite locale as the New York Public Library (“There is none greater!”) and the Ukranian Institute, a funky place, perfect for a small, private party. But the goal, no matter where the location, is the same: “I want my clients to feel like hosts with the ease of being a guest,” says Monn.

Monn is mostly known for his unforgettable creation of the Metropolitan Museum’s annual Costume Institute Ball in Manhattan, hosted by Vogue’s Anna Wintour. It is the most excessive, micromanaged, luxurious, and fabulous social party of the season, considered by many as the Oscars of the East Coast. “With total modesty, I’d say that this is the most important social and fashion party of the year,” said Andre Leon Talley, Vogue’s editor-at-large. The Met’s annual Costume Ball has been designed by Monn for the past few years; many have had the opportunity to witness his imagination and incredible eye for detail. Every last point was scrutinized until a perfect evening occurred. Such mesmerizing evenings are based on simple yet ethereal décor. “To make something look simple actually takes more effort than it does to make something look over the top,” states Monn, proving that simple creations require hard work and grueling time.

Monn’s success has acquired him an ample list of high profile private and corporate clients. He is known for his meticulous attention to detail, a trait he admits might be a fault at times. None of his events have ever seemed perfect to him, even though his satisfied clients would beg to differ. But what makes Monn so wonderful is his sense of modesty; he is indefinitely grateful for his talent and the ability to do what he loves. “I feel like I am truly one of the luckiest people,” he explains, “which is a very big responsibility in life, because what comes along with it is the need to give back, because this truly is a gift that not everyone shares.”

Monn’s path to success is a familiar story. He went through struggles during his childhood, but thanks to great sewing and design talents, he wove his tuxedo and his date’s prom dress in high school. Many years later and a few jobs inbetween, Monn realized that his passion didn’t lie in fashion but in interior design. But then a client from the diamond industry offered Monn a lucrative opportunity that he could not refuse. Monn spent the subsequent 12 years working in the diamond business. “I was very good at it, but I hated every day of it… during that time I was afforded a luxury to do a lot of things I love to do.” The most rewarding was the time he was able to spend entertaining at his home in Sharon, Conneticut. It was from this that his love of event planning grew. He says, “If you have been given some talent, and you are unhappy with your life, you need to stand up to the mirror and ask why… I knew I wanted to do something creative.”

So Monn took control of his life, and began David E. Monn LLC. “My goal and dream forever was to be the next Martha Stewart, and now I know Martha!” His goals have grown along with him; his new mission is to be the voice of luxury, and ambition he is filling, thanks to a monthly column in Departures Magazine titled “All in the Detail,” a form of guidance to luxurious things. He is also penning a book about event planning, with a primary focus on the reader’s five senses, which he feels is of the utmost importance in event planning.

“When we do an event,” he says, “all five senses must be engaged for the night to be magical. If your body is not using one of the senses, it overcompensates with another.” He believes that the sense of smell is the most important, and always uses fragrance at his events. For The Costume Institute Ball in honor of the legendary Coco Chanel, Monn had three thousand Gardenias-Coco’s favorite-flown in from around the country. The flowers delicate fragrance provided the idealic setting for the evening, one which guests remember to this day.

The fact that his home and office are in the flower district is no accident. “I walk my King Charles, Sammy, through the flower district every morning.” He is able to keep up with what is available and in season, but the district is in danger, due to the growing cost of real estate. “[The flower market] has been here for 50 years, and it’s needed… Every major city has a flower market, and New York’s is limited due to space… I put together a vision to present to the City of New York soon, which would create a retail outlet where studios and florists could work.” His passion for helping his city is inspiring.

Influenced by a high school art teacher who recognized Monn’s artistic potential, Monn also realizes the importance of art classes in high school curriculums. Therefore, Monn plans to create an empire vast enough to single handedly endow art programs in high schools across the country, a program that he would personally fund because he understands that budget cuts force schools to remove art classes that otherwise inspire youths throughout their entire lives.

All in all, Monn is dedicated to making virtually every aspect of life better, indulging all five senses. He is both inspired and inspiring at the same time. “I love what I do; that is a great gift,” he says. “If you can create it, you can do it.” He continues to create magic everywhere he goes.